The Family Man
by LunaStellaCat
Summary: Benji Fenwick lived two separate lives. He worked for the Ministry of Magic and the Order of the Phoenix. He lived for his wife and his children. He made a grave mistake. Please review. For my father, who taught me how to fall and get back up again. For Paige (Kerichi), who is teaching me the joy of writing again.
1. The Family Man

For my father, who taught me how to fall and get back up again.  
For Paige (Kerichi), who is teaching me the joy of writing again.  
Thank you.

"The Family Man"

Benji Fenwick seriously considered walking away from all this madness at least three or four times a day. Why did it matter? He kept asking himself this question. And sometimes, and he found this more disturbing than anything else, there was no answer. At thirty-three, he wanted nothing more than a normal life. Benji wanted to wake up in the morning next to his wife without wondering whether or not today would begin with yet another row or just a cup of coffee. If he felt like a lucky man in the morning, he got a combination of the two. He loved his wife, Amelia. On a good day, he even went as far to admit to himself he even liked the woman.

He switched the alarm clock off and rolled back over. The bed was his happy place, and his day did not have to start until he left it. He was a stocky man with shoulder-length curly hair, not exactly what some folks considered Ministry of Magic material, though he worked there. Still tired, he seriously debated whether he ought to call in sick or fake an injury. Well, the faking an injury thing wouldn't really get him too far because he was a lawyer who was usually chained to a desk.

He shook Amelia. He had been lucky in that regard. Benji had somehow played the right hand and landed himself a pretty, intelligent girl. Benji didn't doubt her mind or anything; he meant this as two separate compliments whenever he told people about his wife. No doubt about it, Amelia was smarter than him. She didn't move after the first few tries, so Benji opted for the quick approach and smacked her with his pillow.

She had a square jaw and long dark hair. Amelia was a force to be reckoned with in the legal community, make no mistake. The day he had walked in the Ministry, people probably thought he would be gone within a year. Or maybe he'd be shuffled off to Magical Maintenance. She walked into the place and people immediately sat up a little straighter. Amelia woke up the second time he whacked her with the pillow.

Benji got out of bed. "Five o'clock. Get up, woman."

She spoke into her pillow.

"Did you just say, 'You get up?' Yeah, that's a good comeback. You'd think with two brothers, you'd have better material." Benji walked into the bathroom and left the door open. He took a quick shower and pulled on a set of black robes. When he walked back into the bedroom, he smiled at tiny fingers sliding through the gap between the door and the carpet. He stood by the door. "Who is it?"

The little boy laughed. He pulled his fingers out from underneath the door.

"Morning, Charlie," said Benji, opening the door and scooping his son into his arms. "Tell Mum it's five-thirty."

"Five-thirty!" Charlie shouted as Benji walked down the corridor with him.

Benji stopped in the sitting room and started pacing . It wasn't light outside yet, and he lived for some quiet downtime first thing in the morning. The previous night played through his mind in flashes and disconnected memories. He remembered making it to Baker Street; Benji also recalled his face meeting a brick wall repeatedly as a reward for getting Peter Pettigrew out of a tight spot. The Leg-Locking Curse honestly came as a surprise. Rosier enjoyed his games, and Benji had happened to be on the receiving end last night.

Benji patted Charlie's blonde curls and kissed him on the cheek. "Papa loves you."

"I know," said Charlie, more interested in his fingers.

Amelia walked into the sitting room and slipped on a pair of expensive heels. She wore a loose-fitting buttoned blouse over a pair of khaki slacks. She lit the candle on the coffee table and jumped back when she saw Benji's face.

Benji shook his head, silently telling her not to panic in front of their boy. He set Charlie on the floor. "Go get dressed, okay?"

Amelia waited for Charlie to disappear down the corridor before ahe turned back to Benji. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Boxing," Benji grimaced, giving her a half-truth. He went to the boxing centre when he got the chance, although free time escaped him these days. It stood out as more of a distant memory.

"Guard your face, Benji. What are they going to say when you start opening arguments today?" Amelia walked over and touched his bruises gingerly.

"Well, I've got this wife, you see," he said, wincing when he tried to smile at her.

"Oh, very funny. " Amelia walked into the kitchen and came back with a blue container. Sitting on the coffee table, Amelia opened the tub and smeared purple paste on his face. She fingered a stack of freshly folded laundry; a basket of dirty ones lay on the floor. "You have a nice face."

"Oh, yeah." Benji gestured at his pounded flesh. Even as he pointed at the hamburger meat on his face, he could feel it healing. It burned a little. Benji leaned over and kissed Amelia. "I love you, woman."

There was a loud popping sound outside followed by the roar of an engine. The screaming upstairs started like a revved engine, though the baby hit her stride fast. Amelia rolled her eyes and ran upstairs. Cursing under his breath, Benji met Charlie at the foot of the stairs, picked him up again, and went to answer the door. Fixing Charlie's shirt clumsily, Benji switched the overhead switch with his free hand and tapped the triple deadbolt with his wand. The locks clicked; he opened the door.

"Benji, good man." Sirius Black sat astride his stupid flying motorbike with James Potter riding as his passenger.

James had been resting his hands on Sirius's waist. Benji scoffed, thinking if he'd been on this motorbike, and he wouldn't be caught dead on such a contraption, he'd be locking Sirius in a death grip. Neither of them wore helmets. Furious, Benji slammed his front door. These fools liked like they'd just had the time of their lives.

"Morning, Benji," James said warmly as if they had been invited to breakfast. He saluted Charlie. James grinned broadly and got off the motorbike when Charlie waved back enthusiastically. "Mr. Fenwick Miniature."

"What have you done?" Benji did not really want to know the answer because he already knew his day was shot.

Desperately reorganizing his legal calendar along with the slammed docket in his head, Benji looked from one grinning face to the other. Sirius got off the bike, too. They had not stopped by for a chat. The more he thought about it, Benji wondered how they'd found out where he lived. Benji shifted Charlie in his arms. Charlie had not tied his red trainers, and his trainers were on the wrong feet anyway. Benji spotted the boys' t-shirts; they were plain white with gold phoenixes on them. So, this was a joke, was it? While the senior members of the Order ran around like madmen covering up these fools mistakes, they were strutting around like walking advertisements.

"Secret society, gentlemen, get with the program, will you?" Benji hissed at them. He threw the door open. "Get in."

Amelia sat on the couch in the sitting room nursing the baby. She had pulled her hair up into a tight ponytail while she was upstairs. She called to him over her shoulder, laying her head back. Embarrassed when she spotted the unexpected houseguests, Amelia placed their daughter on the soft green blanket on the couch and hurriedly fastened her shirt with quick fingers.

Sirius stood there grinning like an idiot. Benji punched hard him the arm. Taken off his guard, Sirius tried and failed to grin through the pain.

"Hello," Amelia, a little flushed , smiled at the boys.

"Morning, ma'am. Madam Bones," James corrected himself and shook her hand as they exchanged pleasantries. Sirius followed suit. James smiled at the now sleeping newborn. "She's beautiful. What's she called?"

"Thank you. Her name is Eleanor." Amelia reached over and placed her hand on Eleanor's stomach before she got up. Her briefcase was at her feet. "She was born last Monday."

"You should really take a couple weeks leave," said Benji, circling back to a frequent argument.

"And give Mr. Crouch the satisfaction? 'Women give birth in fields, Miss Bones, and they get on with it.' That's what he said to me last week when I went into labor during the Fawcett trial."

Benji remembered. He'd sat on the bench with her the whole time while she panted like some dog and nearly broke his hand. The trial had lasted a long three hours. He'd carried her out of the courtroom. Nobody, including Benji, told Amelia Bones to stop whenever it came to perusing balanced and fair law.

After patiently questioning them, Amelia got the story out of the boys. Apparently, there had been some misunderstanding with some Muggle police officers, and somehow Death Eaters had arrived on the scene. It hadn't lasted long, and nobody had gotten injured. Benji actually had to bite his tongue. The boys knew they were supposed to contact a senior member of the Order if they got in a tight spot. Amelia knew nothing of the Order. Benji had promised her brother, Edgar, that she would not be dragged into their secrets. She bought the story about the boys seeking legal advice in case this story hit the Muggle papers.

Saying she'd handle it and they had nothing to worry about, Amelia slipped the cotton baby wrap over her shoulder and placed Eleanor inside it. She handed Benji her briefcase and stroked Charlie's face gingerly before she walked over to the fireplace. Benji secured the flowery diaper bag over his shoulder and grabbed their other things. It wasn't until Amelia tossed a handful of Floo Powder into the flames that Benji realized he'd forgotten to contact the babysitter. They had hired a nanny, a Muggle girl, but she was off because of a bout of the flu.

"Sirius and James, can you do me a favor? Could you watch over Charlie for the day?" Benji trusted them enough to spend the day with his son. Benji loved his boy more than anything; this was common knowledge. The Order loved that he was a family man. James said yes, and Sirius shrugged his shoulders. Benji placed one foot in the fireplace after Amelia vanished. He paused, thinking this through carefully. "Charlie goes nowhere near that motorbike, you hear me? If I find you fools are galavanting around with my boy, I will find you. We're not done about earlier, either."

"Right." James gave Charlie a high-five.

Benji, satisfied, stepped into the fireplace. He doubted whether they took his threats seriously, yet this hardly mattered. Benji closed his eyes until he stopped spinning. He stepped out of the grate and dusted off his robes. Amelia had waited for him. They stepped onto the lift with five other people, and Amelia shifted the baby in her arms. The ride was rather pleasant until Mr. Crouch leaned over to speak with them.

The cool female voice inside announced they had arrived on the second floor.

"We're running a daycare centre, are we?" Mr. Crouch sneered at Amelia when the grilles clanged open.

"Mr. Crouch, you told me last Monday that I should give up and take my surging hormones home. Take my leave and drop out of the race, right?" Amelia closed her eyes for a moment as she stepped off the lift. She held a fussy Eleanor closer and started bouncing her. "You'll have to forgive my emotions here, sir, because I'm a poor, simple woman. Fuck off."

Mr. Crouch stood there rooted to the spot, speechless. Benji followed his wife, a grin spreading across his face. Elphinstone Urquart rushed over to get the door for them. Benji walked into her office with them; he set their things on the floor as Amelia sat down at her desk. Elphinstone helped himself to the baby.

"You are so my favorite person today." Benji whispered in her ear as he massaged her shoulders.

"What happened?" Elphinstone sat on her desk and rocked the baby; Eleanor calmed down in minutes. Elphinstone had no children, but he had a magic touch when it came to handling little ones. He had been the same way with Charlie three years ago. "Look at this precious face."

Amelia took notes on the incident that had happened between James and Sirius. As neither of them had a criminal record, she said they should be just fine. Amelia vetted people and learned their histories like nobody's business. As she researched a few things, Benji told Elphinstone about the pleasant conversation they shared with Mr. Crouch.

"Barty counted on at least a month of handing your cases," said Elphinstone. "The good ones hit your desk first. You've got the McKinnon appeal at nine."

"I'm on it," said Amelia, rereading over the files. She caught a zooming memo in her hand and read through the message, frowning. "He's filed a writ of error against me. He drafted this yesterday without giving me notice!"

"Give me that." Benji took the memo from here and read it, annoyed. "Yesterday, this was his case; the handoff takes place at seven the next day. He's handing you his mess, jumping over to other side, and dumping the problem in your lap. That fool!"

"That's fine." Amelia sat back in her chair. She got lost in her thoughts and read through her papers. She had been gone for eight days, but the missed work had piled up. Shortly after eight, she went into the bathroom to feed Eleanor again before handing their daughter off to Benji and picking up her briefcase. "If Mr. Crouch wants a fight, he'll get one. I'm going to kill that man. See you at lunch."

Elphinstone rubbed his hands together excitedly. Amelia was his protégée. He'd crafted her out of nothing. Although his pet project had initially been Benji and Minerva McGonagall, he had shuffled his cards and stacked the deck again. Benji was handpicked as his righthand man, though he'd stepped back a bit since Charlie arrived. Elphinstone had introduced Amelia to Benji. Always a man who wore his heart on his sleeve, Elphinstone had orchestrated their relationship. Benji had to hand it to him: he was quite the matchmaker.

"She's dangerous, your wife," said Elphinstone, reading through rolls of parchment when they entered his comfortable office next door. He wasn't meeting with clients today. He always reserved Tuesdays for research and busy work.

"It's your doing." Benji grinned at him as he closed the door. Elphinstone sat down in his leather desk chair, and Benji placed his hands on the polished desk. How hadn't he seen this earlier? Elphinstone practiced law like he played wizarding chess; he enjoyed the game. "You sly fox. You're positioning her to knock Crouch out of contention for Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Don't deny it."

"Deny what?" Elphinstone winked at him. "Oh, I am the endgame, Benji. I'm just biding my time and building my team. You can all thank me later."'

"Too bad Minerva left." Benji sat down in the chair opposite Elphinstone's desk. "Can you imagine that race for the head of the department? Damn."

"Indeed. I mentioned that to Minerva the other day," said Elphinstone, drumming his fingers on his desk.

Both Elphinstone and Benji got lost in their individual work projects over the next few hours. Benji left to file an extension and finalize an adoption. He made a court appearance around eleven. Benji was the head of the family law division, and opening arguments in a dispute really just led to the next step. He'd left Eleanor with Elphinstone. When he returned, Benji stopped outside the door and listened to Elphinstone sing Eleanor a Gaelic lullaby as the old man walked around his office. Benji felt truly blessed to have this man as his mentor and friend.

Amelia stopped by around one o'clock. She took the baby in her arms and sighed when Benji placed his hands on her shoulder. She made a face when Elphinstone cleared his throat.  
He sat there flipping through a heavy volume. "What?"

"Oh, nothing." Elphinstone closed his book. "How was the hearing? Is Barty hiding?"

"No." Amelia kissed Eleanor. Some newcomer knocked on Elphinstone's office door minutes later asking for her. It was urgent. Eleanor started crying loudly, and Amelia bit her lip, blinking her eyes furiously.

"You want me to take it?" Elphinstone asked. He got up when she nodded. Before he headed out the door, he hugged her tightly. "Listen to me. You can be both. Not everything is on your shoulders, all right? You do whatever you can whenever you can. Then you go home to your family and your idiot husband here. Please let me help you. Go home, darling. Take your girls home, Benji."

Benji gathered their things. He decided on a walk, so he steered her off towards the visitor entrance. He waved to bored Eric, the security wizard, at the desk. The red telephone box was a tight fit, but they managed it. They walked down narrow streets and took a strange route because he didn't want them followed. After being in the Order for over five years, Benji considered paranoia as normal behavior.

They stepped onto Seventh Avenue and started discussing the hearing. Amelia wasn't as angry with Mr. Crouch anymore, though they would never be close friends. Benji got a funny feeling as he turned onto another street. There were no signs or loud cracks. Everything felt normal, yet something was different. Benji turned around and leaned against Amelia's back. They both drew out their wands at the same time. Benji left the diaper bag and the briefcase on side of road.

He squeezed Amelia's hand. "Trust me."

"Benji." Amelia cursed when they finally heard the footsteps.

Four men came towards them from each cardinal direction. Benji chuckled darkly. He had to hand it to these bastards: they were getting bold in broad daylight. Well, it was early afternoon. When a thin man stepped towards Amelia, she Stunned him without thinking about it. His body illuminated red for a moment before he hit the pavement facedown. She tried to ignore Eleanor's screams, though they clearly distracted her, and she nearly tripped over herself. Benji jumped aside when a flash of light got aimed at him, and he shot a curse at a retreating Death Eater. He missed because his hand was shaking with anger.

"Don't worry, Mr. Fenwick." Evan Rosier lowered the hood of his robes. His cold smile reached his eyes. Benji gasped when a well-aimed spell hit him in the back. Ropes tightened around his throat, and he dropped to his knees. "You might want to worry a little."

Amelia struck another Death Eater with a non-verbal Killing Curse. Benji saw a flash of green light, and the man fell onto the pavement, lifeless. Two other figures approached. One was smaller than the others. Rosier crushed his boot onto Benji's right hand; Benji's bones shattered. Benji cried out when Rosier cast the Cruciatus Curse on him. His body went rigid and he writhed when pain shot up his spine and coursed through his neck. Rosier, enjoying himself, cast the curse again, and slammed his boot into Benji's stomach one, two, three times.

"Call her off, sir. This is between the two of us." Rosier called to Amelia. "You want me to kill him?"

Amelia had been hit by some curse. She turned to face Rosier, her face had a deep cut, but she held her wand arm quite steady. Two Death Eaters lay at her feet, alive but injured. Except for Rosier and the short Death Eater, the others had been dealt with. "Let him go."

"Oh, I don't think so, madam." Rosier spat her title sarcastically. He picked up Benji's discarded wand and snapped it in two. Throwing the shards away, he spoke conversationally. "Tell her what you did, Benji."

"No." Benji kept his eyes on him. He turned to face Amelia. "Leave."

She didn't move. Amelia kept her eyes on Rosier, holding the baby with one arm, her expression determined.

"Benji's been playing by his own rules. Haven't you, sir?" Rosier gave him another dose of the Cruciatus Curse. Benji arched his back and felt like he wanted to claw at his eyes. "You took that filthy Squib from my sister, and you gave her to some Muggle family. You were clever, though, and forged the documents. You kept it as a closed adoption. You've been stalling every action bought by pureblood families in court."

"She's a Squib," Benji gasped. The girl had no magical blood. What did it matter?

Rosier chuckled softly. He walked over to Amelia and finally disarmed her when she hesitated. Rosier held Amelia in his arms, held two wands in his hand, and stroked Eleanor's head.

"What if I took your daughter? My, she is a pretty thing. Lovely blonde hair." Rosier jumped back, startled, when Amelia struck him with her fist. His jaw cracked. Spilling blood onto the pavement, Rosier caught her by the arm when she tried to strike him again. "Take him in the alley."

The small man walked over to Benji. He shattered the bones in his leg with a pipe, refusing to look at him. The other one was quicker work, though it was certainly no less painful. Benji desperately wished he would just pass out. Benji heard Amelia's screams as the man dragged him off, though whether it was because she had been harmed or cried out in fear, he did not know. The scent of garbage and rotting food hit his nostrils. Benji groaned when the man pressed his face against a brick wall of some establishment. Slipping in and out of consciousness, Benji thought he caught the profile of a man with a small nose and watery eyes. Gasping in sudden recognition, Benji reached out with his crushed hand. When the pipe sliced into his face, Benji crumbled onto the pavement and felt no more.


	2. The Black Box

Amelia opened her eyes when she heard the baby crying. It sounded distant and far off, almost like a memory. It still amazed her how quickly that bond got forged. Thinking it was in the early morning, she nudged the side of the bed, deciding to pass this one off to Benji. She felt sore and exhausted. She felt around the bed, slowly realizing she slept on a lumpy couch. It was not a comfortable one. Benji wasn't there. As she looked around, Amelia recognized the neutral colored walls, the chairs, and the armoires in the small place. This was the sleeping room where the department, usually the judges or justices from the Wizengamot, slept between trials with a slammed docket.

"Where is she?" she asked sleepily.

Amelia glanced at the bassinet on the floor; it didn't look familiar. Had Benji gone out and purchased it so she could sleep with the baby nearby? He must have taken Eleanor out of the room when she got fussy. He was so considerate, and of the two of them a much better parent. Amelia was no great shakes at being a mother. She unapologetically gave the credit to Benji. He was a better father than Amelia's father had been to her and her two elder brothers. That was no insult, either. Edward Bones basically deserved the award Father of a Lifetime. He had given his children everything.

Amelia stood and patted her shirt over her pudgy bulge She slipped her shoes back on and walked clumsily over to the door. When she reached for the doorknob, Mad-Eye Moody opened it from the other side. Confused, Amelia took a step back. She pulled on a jacket that hung over a wooden chair; it smelled like her husband. "May I help you?" she asked her unexpected visitor. Despite his revolving glass eye and his wooden peg leg, Mad-Eye didn't necessarily frighten her. All the same, a visit from one of the most skilled Aurors didn't mean good news. This was confirmed when another man followed Mad-Eye into the room. She recognized the slender form and warm smile of Frank Longbottom. Frank wore a grey jumper over old jeans; he looked like he'd been running around the city.

"I'm afraid I don't have time for a consultation. My daughter needs me," she said quickly.

"She's fine," said Mad-Eye.

"No." Amelia chose to ignore the fact that she no longer heard a baby crying.

"Sit. We need to talk," he said.

She followed Mad-Eye's request while Frank closed and locked the door. She sat in the chair the jacket had been on, and Mad-Eye and Frank took the couch. She felt extremely self-conscious about her damp shirt, even though Benji's jacket covered her. Amelia had sat through enough interrogations to know what this meant.

"Okay, I'll start." Amelia did not want to ask this question. She looked from one man to the other and wanted to be anywhere from here. "What is this about?"

"You don't remember what happened?" Frank slowly asked, clearly reorganizing his approach.

It annoyed Amelia that she recognized this tactic, and sat analyzing them. "Don't talk to me like I'm some poor housewife, gentlemen. This is me."

"I was serious," said Frank, shuffling his papers and pulling a silver cigarette lighter out of his pocket. Frank was not a smoker; he simply played with it.

"I like you, Amelia, because you remind me of your brother, Edgar." Mad-Eye got heavily to his feet, deciding not to sit down for some reason, and took something out of his cloak. It was a small black box.

"Try to remember what happened in the alley," said Mad-Eye. He dropped his tone, and his sudden kindness scared her. "We need your help to reconstruct events. You were there. I got you out."

"The alley?" Amelia still could not understand why two of the most important Aurors were sitting here talking with her. Granted, Benji was a Ministry employee, but that man put his children first. Amelia came in a close second, a fact she gladly accepted. Family law was important, of course, yet Benji did everyday work. She was Edgar Bones's little sister, yes, but there were others got attacked by Death Eaters. She didn't remember anything about Mad-Eye yanking her out of any alleyway.

"Do you remember leaving the Ministry?" Frank asked.

"Yes. We were headed home. Benji probably thought I needed to walk. Look at me." Amelia was glad she wore a large jacket. She was easily twenty pounds heavier than she had been last year.

"Benji doesn't care about that," said Frank.

"No. You seem to be on very friendly terms with Benji." She couldn't make the connection. Why would an Auror spend his free time with a family law lawyer? Amelia raised her eyebrows and waited for the other shoe to drop. Mad-Eye cursed under his breath, apparently annoyed with her dodging the question. Aurors really should not bother with questioning the bookworms on the other side of the team. They all started out with learning the same tactics in the beginning.

"I've never met a better man," Frank said. "How many Death Eaters followed you into the alley?"

"Six." The moment the word slipped out, a memory surfaced. "They came out of nowhere and targeted us. I didn't even know who they were. I took down two of them. I'd never cast a Body-Bind Curse before."

Amelia let that sink in for a moment. "Are they pressing charges? They dragged him away like a dog, and Rosier was going to take my daughter. They're the ones who should be prosecuted. I'm sure Benji told you that. Where is he?. I need him."

"Madam," said Mad-Eye.

"Call me Amelia. We ought to at least pretend we're friends."

"Amelia, come sit with me." Mad-Eye nodded at Frank to get up. Frank walked over to the other side of the room. Amelia sat down next to Mad-Eye and wondered about the contents in his black box. He tapped his gnarled fingers on the lid. "I'm going to show you some things. I need you to tell me whether any of this belongs to your husband. Whenever you are ready."

Amelia nodded, feeling she would never be ready. Mad-Eye opened the box. Inside, there was a finger, a lock of blonde hair, a severed tongue, a carved wooden figure of a train, and bone. Her hand trembled as she touched her lips. "The toy is Charlie's favorite." Benji's uncle, a man called Charles Fenwick who wrote for the iTimes/i, had handcrafted that train set as a Christmas gift. "Why is it in a box with hair and . . . and . . . ." She suddenly felt faint. Frank rushed over and steadied her.

"Where is my husband?" She spoke in a flat tone and wrapped the jacket tighter around her body.

"He's . . . . " Frank drew in a ragged breath and said in a choked voice, "I'm so sorry."

Amelia dropped the box and rushed out into the corridor. She vomited on the expensive carpet. Frank used a spell to clean the mess and draped his cloak over her shoulders. He took her by the hand, walked her into the Atrium, and helped her into the fireplace.

A year passed with a blink of an eye. After the funeral she'd gone through the motions of living, but the children had needed her in a way they hadn't before, and gradually she'd become the parent they deserved. She'd hired a housekeeper to clean and cook and do the marketing, which freed her to do what Benji had done: put their children first.

On the opening day of the trial, Amelia walked into the Ministry of Magic dressed in midnight blue robes. Her hair was tied back in a tight knot at the base of her neck. Charlie held her right hand. Eleanor, still figuring out her feet and standing on wobbly legs, held her left.

After they went a short distance, Amelia stopped and decided to carry to carry Eleanor. Cameras flashed in sequence when they reached the Atrium. Amelia had expected this. Honestly, she'd even prepared for a reporter of the iDaily Prophet/i to hound her with questions. It felt being on the other side of the fence, though, for she usually prepared clients for this ordeal. When reporters asked after the children, Amelia rested Eleanor's head on her shoulder and patted her thick blonde hair. "They miss their father." She and the children stepped into a lift, joining Frank Longbottom and his wife, Alice.

"This is madness,"said Amelia, when the grilles of the lift closed.

. Alice knelt down on the floor and started speaking with Charlie. Amelia liked that Alice spoke to Charlie like he was a small adult. Both Longbottoms had become dear friends. Frank was lanky as ever, but Alice looked like she had gained a little weight recently. She was a kind, round-faced young woman. Put her in a tight spot, though, and she fought like hell.

"This is what we were going for?" Amelia turned towards Frank, who smiled approvingly and gave her a nod. He'd asked her to dress in a simple but appropriate set of robes. Blue and grey worked towards sympathy. She noticed Frank's hand pressed on a lock button. That was why no one else got onto the lift. Amelia, suddenly nervous, glanced down at her expensive grey heels and searched through her matching handbag. "I forgot my wallet. Damn it."

Charlie repeated her last offhand comment. He just said it without the words carrying an empty meaning. Amelia rolled her eyes at the ceiling. "A new curse word. Perfect. Your great-uncle's going to kill me, Charlie, thank you."

Frank and Alice chuckled softly. Charlie, of course, didn't get it. When they stepped onto the second floor, the cameras and reporters swarmed again. Frank led the children off to his cubicle to draw on parchment while Amelia sat down into Alice's cubicle. Though Frank had cleared her appearance, Alice took down Amelia's hair and started pinning up her hair again.

"How are you?" asked Alice, speaking through a hair clip she held in her teeth.

"I don't know," said Amelia, shrugging her shoulders. She flushed a little, sighing when she noticed Alice caught this in the mirror. "You're going to think I'm inappropriate." Alice often accompanied Frank when he served as part of her security detail at home. Mad-Eye had placed Aurors at her home the night after Benji died; this, he had said, was non-negotiable. The women had gotten very close.

"Try me." Alice set the hairbrush on her desk and French braided Amelia's hair with quick fingers. She laughed softly, sharing a story to calm her down. "I ate a whole thing of ice cream in bed last night; I made Frank head to the store after he left you. The whole thing. No judgment. You are good."

Amelia rolled her eyes. "Don't you love when they tell you pregnancy is this wonderful thing? It's like harboring a parasite."

"Thank you." Alice turned Amelia's head straight. "What is it?"

"I, uh, had a dream last night that I making love to my husband. Benji was a good lover." She flushed with color. "I mean, it was … and I woke up alone. So, I went downstairs, and John Dawlish relives Frank, you know. And he asked me what was wrong. I locked myself in the downstairs bathroom for an hour. Dawlish stood outside the whole time. So… that and taking care of two energetic children was my morning."

Alice shook with laughter. "I'm sorry. Don't tell Frank because he'll assign another Auror to you in an hour."

"Uh huh." Amelia drummed her fingers on the desk. At nine -fifteen, Alice said it was time to go, and Amelia stood up. "I'm ready."

Alice escorted her into the courtroom. Amelia had never offered testimony outside of a skit while helping others through a mock trial. She had never faced the Wizengamot, except when she watched from the crowd or sat on the bench herself. Her hands felt sweaty, but she sat down and recited an oath she'd memorized as part of a procedure. She raised her right hand: Amelia still wore her wedding band.

"State your name." Mr. Crouch was the lead interrogator. These days, he held that seat among the Wizengamot without question.

Amelia spotted Albus Dumbledore, Mad-Eye Moody and Tobias Ogden on the bench. Elphinstone, among the crowd in the front row, gave her a supportive nod.

"Amelia Susan Bones." She knew the drill because she'd spent hours prepping countless witches and wizards for this sort of thing. Of course, that did not make this any easier. She hesitated briefly and added her officer details. "Badge number 40087, investigative crimes unit, Senior Branch."

Mr. Crouch nodded curtly. "And who are you in relation to the deceased, Benjamin Daniel Fenwick?"

"I'm his wife. I was his wife, excuse me, Benji was my husband." Amelia answered the next question before Mr. Crouch asked it of her. It felt easier to get the personal details out of the way. "We were married on December 21, 1975 at Stafford Courthouse in London. We have two children: Charles Jonathan Edgar Bones Fenwick, age four, and Eleanor Sarah Jacqueline Bones Fenwick, age one."

"Thank you." Mr. Crouch spoke with little emotion and shuffled his papers.

All of this was known information. He pointed at Evan Rosier. Rosier appeared thinner and sat in a chained chair. Amelia was secretly pleased Azkaban seemed to affect him, even if it was on some small level. They did not bring the Dementors inside the courtroom. Rosier might look like he'd missed a few meals, but he smiled at her when he caught her eye. Amelia gripped the hands of her chair and stared determinedly back at him.

"Do you recognize this man?" Mr. Crouch pointed at Rosier. When there was noise from the crowd, he raised his voice. "Can you identify him for the court?" "Evan Rosier." Amelia said the name softly, never taking her eyes off the Death Eater. She cleared her throat and spoke louder for the court when Mr. Crouch asked her to repeat herself. "Evan Rosier. He attacked and tortured my husband. He targeted us on our way home from work."

She shared her rehearsed story with the Wizengamot. She'd repeated the testimony so much over the last year, it almost felt like she sat on the bench among the witches and wizards of the Wizengamot.

"And what happened after they took your husband?" asked a wizard sitting on Mr. Crouch's right.

"Mr. Rosier taunted me daughter. I lost consciousness shortly after that." Amelia stood up after Mr. Crouch dismissed her. She raised her hand, speaking only to Rosier. "You took a father away from his children simply because he saved children who had nothing to do with this war. For what you've done, I hope you die a long, painful, lonely death."

Amelia left the courtroom, ignoring the calls from the spectators in the crowd. When she made it to the corridor, Alice Longbottom steered her off the right.

"That was amazing," exclaimed Alice, squeezing her arm as they walked back into Auror Headquarters.

"Momma's here," said Frank, picking up Charlie from his desk chair. He assessed Amelia's expression. "I'm stealing this one, okay? I love this kid. Watch this. Charlie, go."

Charlie opened the large volume on the desk and read slowly through the preface with little help.

"He doesn't understand what he's reading, and he would anger your mother," said Alice. She laughed with Frank, who stood there nodding. They gave each other a high five. "Yeah, I want him, too. He's brilliant."

"Okay. Two boys. You two are going to kill yourselves." Amelia held out her hand to her boy and her girl. Eleanor reached for her with dimpled fingers.

Charlie stayed in the chair, swinging his feet, and asked his favorite question. "Where's Papa?"

She'd tried to explain so many times, but Charlie, with a child's logic, thought his Papa's absence was temporary. Amelia knelt down on the floor and took her son's hand. She swallowed hard. "Charlie, do you remember when I told you Papa was in an accident? He got hurt?"

"Yeah." Charlie nodded at his red shoes. "But he's okay. He's coming home."

"No, Charlie, no." Amelia reached up and stroked his face. "I wish he could be with us, but he can't. He got hurt so badly, he's not - he's dead. Papa died."

"Forever?"

She nodded, her tears mingling with her son's as she held him close to her aching heart.

Seventeen Years Later

On the twelfth of August, Amelia headed back into her office. Before she headed to her quarters, she stopped to speak with her legal secretary, Catherine Hendrix. The woman had been by Amelia's side for the past ten years, and she took orders without the slightest complaint. Amelia spoiled this woman like she used to with her nanny, and she continued to pamper her housekeeper. Catherine and Eliane, the housekeeper, for Amelia didn't believe in having a house-elf, celebrated Christmas like royalty, thanks to her.

"Cat, I need to immediately file an inquiry with Azkaban in connection with the Potter case," she said, placing a coffee on Catherine's desk. "If the Minister stops you…"

"I serve you, ma'am, not the Minister," said Catherine, already dipping her quill into a bottle of ink.

"Thank you." Amelia stepped into her office and closed the door. She placed her briefcase on her desk and sat down.

The whole hearing had so many holes in it; the proceeding had just been plain embarrassing. Never mind that the Wizengamot had been shut down by a Hogwarts headmaster. Although the more she thought about this, Albus Dumbledore had been Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot for years. He knew how to play his hand. Amelia had not even been briefed fully on the case before she walked into Courtroom Ten. Someone, and she had a shrewd idea who, must have worked behind the scenes to pull that off. Amelia had married herself to her docket, the legal calendar, a long, long time ago because it kept her head above water.

There hadn't even been a case! Who would cast a Patronus Charm for no good reason? At fifteen, Harry Potter knew how to cast a spell half the Ministry couldn't muster on a first try. If Fudge hadn't steered the proceeding, she would have asked to see it. Amelia couldn't help herself. She strode over and grabbed a volume off her bookshelf and reread Clause Seven. She knew it, of course, yet she wanted to see it in print.

There was a knock on the door. "Yes?"

"Momma, it's me." It was Charlie.

Charlie opened the door and came in without waiting for an invitation. At twenty, her son had become quite the successful lawyer. He hadn't chosen a speciality yet, of course. He would've given his father a run for his money, though, and probably would've run circles around Benji for the pure joy of it. He had pulled his blonde hair back in a ponytail and wore blue robes. Always making himself at home, Charlie set his breakfast things, a drink carrier and a paper bag on her polished desk. He sat on the edge of the desk and handed her a coffee.

"Double vanilla cappuccino," he said, taking the lid off his own coffee. "So, I have a problem."

"Are you speaking to me as your mother or as the Head of Magical Law Enforcement?" Amelia helped herself to the bag and buttered a crumpet.

"Both?" Charlie rolled his eyes at the ceiling when she shook her head. "Momma! Fine. The second one, I guess. I want off Dolores Umbridge's service, like, yesterday. You're wasting me. She's cruel, and I'm not dealing with that. I can put that woman to shame in my sleep."

"Charlie," said Amelia, smiling at his confidence. He reminded her of his father, especially when it came to the law. "Pace yourself, all right? We learn to walk before learn to run."

"She's a bitch." Charlie bit into his plain crumpet and shrugged his shoulders when Amelia shot him a look. He laughed with his mouth full when Amelia chose not to say anything. "See there? Uh huh."

"Charlie, you are my son, and I love you, but you are not immune. You have no safety net." Amelia could not save him even if she wanted to because it would be seen as a blatant conflict of interest. She would be breaking fifty rules sticking off her neck for him. After slipping out her monocle and setting it on the desk, Amelia shuffled through a stack of paperwork. "Mr. Ogden has an open slot. You did not get this from me."

Charlie took the paper from her and slipped it into his briefcase. There was another knock on the door. It was Dolores Umbridge. She looked Charlie up and down, surprised to see him.

"Morning, Amelia, Charles." Dolores sat down in the chair.

"I'm not discussing this case with you, Dolores" said Amelia, turning her attention back to her work. "I have no opinion, but you should remember Catherine Hendrix is mine, and you shouldn't be trying to go behind her back or pulling one over on her."

"Amelia," Dolores said in a shocked tone, as if she'd never dream of doing such a thing. She clearly had no intention of leaving Amelia's office.

"You want my honest opinion? You're not going to like it." Amelia closed a folder and scribbled a few notes on the outside of it. She waited, and Dolores smiled at her politely. Amelia stood and started walking across her office. "If Professor Dumbledore hadn't showed up, I would've jumped off the bench, taken that boy into chambers for counsel, and defended him myself. You stranded him. Is that fair?"

"Amelia, you're the Head of Magical Law Enforcement," said Dolores, giving her usual artificial girlish laughter. "You can't do that."

"She could've played a wild card," said Charlie. He tossed his trash in the wastebasket. Dolores turned to look at him with polite interest. "Before a proceeding starts, counsel, whether the defense or the prosecution, can switch sides. It's a wild card. Clause Nine."

"The point is you left him alone. If you had done that to my son or my daughter, I would have destroyed you. All of you. I think it's disgraceful." Amelia opened her door. "I have work to do, Dolores, if you'll excuse me."

"Charles, reschedule my lunch with the Minister for one o'clock. Good day, Amelia." Dolores left them.

"She doesn't know about anything," said Charlie, refilling his coffee cup with his wand. He gestured at the woman outside the door. "Do you see what I have to work with? Save me."

"Have a good day, Charlie. See you at dinner. Write your sister, please, because Eleanor misses you." Amelia smiled when he saluted her, a mock gesture, because she was his boss on some level.

"She misses you, too, now that you both work all hours," Charlie said. He grinned. "You don't compromise for shit. I know you catch a lot of stuff here for doing the right thing, but I want you to hear from me you're a good mother. You'd do anything for Eleanor and me. I hated that when we were little, but I get it now." Stopping as if to think about something, he placed his hand on the doorframe. "You'd go down swinging for that Potter boy, and you don't even know him. Thanks for being there, Momma, we love you."

"I love you, too." Amelia said.

Charlie ran off to deliver his message to the Minister and came back some time later; he waved to Catherine as Amelia told the secretary, "Charlie and I are going out for lunch. I'll be back around two-thirty. Move Summers to three o'clock this afternoon."

"Yes, ma'am," said Catherine, making a note of the schedule change. She winked at Charlie.

"Where're we going?" Charlie followed her into the Atrium and playfully took her hand and swung it when she led him towards the visitors entrance. He was so much like his father.

She brought him to where Seventh Avenue stopped at Tailor's End. She gave his fingers a squeeze and let go of his hand. "This is where your papa died." Amelia paced the small area all the way back to the brick wall. "I would bring your sister here, but she's on a twelve hour shift at St. Mungo's."

"Okay."

"You want to know why I fight?" Amelia stopped at the brick wall, turned around, and walked back again. "This is it. They stopped us here. Papa fell here, and they dragged him into the alleyway."

"I've read the case," said Charlie, walking along the path. "Mad-Eye bought me here a couple of years ago. We had a long talk here before I took the offer at the Ministry."

"Did he? I didn't know that." Amelia hugged herself. She turned on her heel the third time. After eighteen years, it was easier to return to this place, though the pain was still there. "I figured you'd read the case and the trial transcript. Papa and I would have been married for twenty-two years this year."

Charlie put his hands in his pockets. "Do you miss him?"

"I miss him for you and your sister." Amelia shrugged, hesitating for a moment. "I miss having someone to sleep with in bed. His laugh. His eyes. His voice." She swallowed hard. "Listen, Charlie, if something happens to me - no, don't look at me that way - I want you to know you and your sister mean the world to me. It took me a while to realize that. You two are the best gifts your father gave me."

Charlie smiled. Amelia hugged him tightly, hoping that Benji knew how much his family would always love him, and that they made him proud. 


End file.
